Body shaping tool and accessory

ABSTRACT

A automobile body shaping tool is rendered more efficient by means of an accessory including: a hook for attachment to the end of the tool; and several anchors for attachment to the body to be shaped and for receiving the hook so as to result in attachment of the tool to the body.

United States Patent n91 Kirspei BODY SHAPING TOOL AND ACCESSORY [75] Inventor: Robert Franklin Kirspel, Middlesex,

[73] Assignee: Eric Schubert, Amelia, Ohio a part interest [22] Filed: July 28, 1971 [21] App1.No.: 166,841

[52] US. Cl. 72/460, 72/705 [51] Int.'Cl. B21j 13/08 [58] Field of Search 72/705, 479, 460; 29/278; 81/52.3, 52.35; 85/32.l, 41, 50 R [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,791,926 6/1972 Guyton 72/705 1,160,191 11/1915 Neider 85/50 R Oct. 16, 1973 3,030,837 4/ 1962 Chartier 72/705 2,283,766 5/1942 Sbicca 85/50 R 2,749,795 6/1956 Boykin, Jr 72/705 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 923,876 4/1963 Great Britain 72/705 Primary Examiner-Charles W. Lanham Assistant Examiner-M. J. Keenan Attorney-John C. Fox

[57] ABSTRACT A automobile body shaping tool is rendered more efficient by means of an accessory including: a hook for attachment to the end of the tool; and several anchors for attachment to the body to be shaped and for receiving the hook so as to result in attachment of the tool to the body.

1 Claim, 4 Drawing Figures PAIENIED 0m 1 a ma PRIOR ART INVENTOR BY ROBERT E K/RSPEL ATTORNEY BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to an accessory for a body shaping tool, and to the tool as modified by the accessory.

2. Prior Art In the automotive repair field, auto body dents are often repaired using the aid of a slide hammer pulling tool. One embodiment of such a tool is depicted in FIG. I of the drawing, labeled Prior Art. Briefly, an array of holes are drilled or otherwise formed in the auto body in the area of the dent. Then the pulling tool is attached to the body by advancing screw 11 into one of the holes, and the dented portion of the body is forced outward by the body shop worker by holding the handle 12 of the tool in one hand and forcibly sliding hammer 13 along shaft 14 and into stop 15 with the other hand. The process is repeated at each hole until the dented portion of the body conforms as nearly as possible to the contours of the undented portions of the body. The holes are then sealed with body putty, and the damaged body finish is restored.

Excessive pulling at any particular hole location may stretch the body locally sufficiently to weaken it mechanically or even to result in cracks therein or in the body finish surrounding the dented area. Thus, dent shaping is often a delicate and tedious operation, requiring repeated and gradual pulling at any particular location. Since the tool must be screwed into each hole before pulling, and unscrewed from each hole after pulling, this operation can be very time consuming as well as tedious.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention, an accessory is provided for the slide hammer pulling tool, which accessory permits easy attachment of the tool to hole 10- cations in a workpiece, such as, for example, a dented portion of an automotive body or other shaped body of metal or other ductile or plastic material.

The accessory comprises a hook, adapted for attachment to one end of the pulling tool, and a plurality of anchors each adapted for engagement with the hook and adapted for attachment to the body to be shaped.

The accessory thus enables attachment of the pulling tool to any of several locations on the body for pulling by engagment of the hook with an anchor. Consequently, significant savings of time in body shaping with the too] may be realized.

The invention includes not only the tool as modified by the accessory, but also the accessory itself.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a front elevation view of a slide hammer pulling tool, labeled Prior Art;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the hook portion of the inventive accessory for the pulling tool of FIG. 1, showing a portion of the shaft of the tool in phantom;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of one embodiment of one of the anchors which together with other anchors and the hook of FIG. 2, comprise the inventive accessory for the pulling tool of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of an automobile body, and the pulling tool of FIG. 1, shown in functional relationship with the accessory parts of FIGS. 2 and 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring now to the Drawing, there is shown in FIG. 1 the pulling tool which has already been more particularly described in the Prior Art section of this application. It will be seen that in the embodiment shown, screw 11 may be easily removed from shaft 14 by unscrewing hub 16, to which screw 11 is attached. In FIG. 2 is shown a preferred embodiment of hook 20, comprising threaded nut 21 welded to slotted angle 22. Hook 20 may thus be screwed onto the threaded end of shaft 14, a portion of which is shown in phanton in FIG. 2.

A preferred embodiment of anchor 30, comprising slotted post 32 and securing screw 31, is shown in FIG. 3. Hook 20 and anchor 30 are of such dimensions that the slotted portion of angle 22 will engage slotted post 32, shown in FIG. 4. In the Figure, there is also shown a portion of an auto body 40, having a dented portion 41. Several holes have been formed in the dented portion and slotted posts 32 attached to the body with screws 31, not shown. A body worker may now proceed to shape the body by alternately engaging the dented portion at various locations with the slide hammer pulling tool, simply by sliding hook 20 into the desired anchor 30.

The invention is useful in a varity of applications in the body shaping field in addition to those described, which applications will become immediately apparent to those skilled in the art. Also, other embodiments of the inventive attachment are contemplated. For example, the hook and anchor may be replaced by a modified hook and threaded eye, such as the type used to secure doors.

What is claimed is:

1. An accessory for a body shaping tool comprising:

a hook comprising an angle, one end of the angle having extended sides to form a slot through the angle in the thickness direction, and means for attaching the other end of the angle to the shaft of the body shaping tool, said means comprising a threaded nut, the nut attached to the end of the angle opposite the slotted end, the thread axis of the nut being substantially normal to the plane of the portion of the angle containing the slot, and

a plurality of anchors, each comprising a hollow post having a first flange at one end of the post and a second flange at the opposite end of the post, and means for attaching the posts to the body to be shaped. 

1. An accessory for a body shaping tool comprising: a hook comprising an angle, one end of the angle having extended sides to form a slot through the angle in the thickness direction, and means for attaching the other end of the angle to the shaft of the body shaping tool, said means comprising a threaded nut, the nut attached to the end of the angle opposite the slotted end, the thread axis of the nut being substantially normal to the plane of the portion of the angle containing the slot, and a plurality of anchors, each comprising a hollow post having a first flange at one end of the post and a second flange at the opposite end of the post, and means for attaching the posts to the body to be shaped. 